Biden picks up O'Rourke alum to lead digital efforts

Joe Biden is beefing up his digital team, bringing on a veteran Democratic operative to lead his online operation, his campaign tells POLITICO.

Rob Flaherty, who served as the digital director for former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s ill-fated presidential bid, is joining the former vice president's campaign. Previously, Flaherty was the creative director at Priorities USA — the leading Democratic super PAC — and was digital rapid-response director on Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.

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“Rob is one of the top digital talents in politics today, and the Biden campaign is lucky to have him on board,” Jen O'Malley Dillon, O’Rourke’s former campaign manager, said in a statement to POLITICO. “Beto ran a digital-first campaign, and Rob drove our campaign's strategy to effectively and authentically reach our dedicated community of supporters.”

Flaherty’s hiring comes on the heels of Biden’s campaign releasing a viral digital ad last week. The ad — which has 11.9 million views on Twitter — is critical of President Donald Trump, saying the world is mocking the president, cut with a voiceover of Biden saying, “The world sees Trump for what he is.”

“We are excited to welcome Rob to Team Joe, as we add more firepower to our already robust digital operation,” Kate Bedingfield, Biden’s deputy campaign manager, said. “Rob is a creative, savvy digital strategist whose experience and skill will be a valuable addition to the team and our efforts to reach voters online.”

Biden has ranked in about the middle of the pack on digital ad spending since launching his campaign. According to an archive maintained by Facebook, he’s spent over $3.1 million on ads on the platform — trailing candidates like Pete Buttigieg, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Facebook has largely been used this primary to help raise small-dollar donations for candidates. Biden has also spent $1.5 million on Google ads, according to that company’s archive.

An early test for Flaherty and the rest of the Biden digital team: next week’s Democratic debate. Biden and six other candidates are slated to participate in a debate on Thursday in Los Angeles hosted by PBS NewsHour and POLITICO, and debates have typically been big online fundraising and mobilization moments for campaigns.